Yusra Gulab Jamman

I visit Yusra’s blog often for the sheer happiness and feeling of effervescence it bestows. Yusra is bursting with life and energy and her blog captures this feeling so well. She is also a very talented poet with her own unique voice and stylings. Much of Yusra’s poetry is vibrant and alive; rich in colour and often written from an unusual viewpoint that adds to its freshness and appeal. But don’t take my word for it, head on over to http://www.gulabjammanwrites.wordpress.com and experience the magic for yourself. In the meantime, please enjoy:

Conversation with a Spider

In the shadow of my hand,
you
scuttle, scuttle,
slip –
on tiles too smooth
for your too-long limbs,

Each leg splayed slender
as a brush of wheat
beneath
the reaper’s
scythe.

Your skeletal form:
A naked orphan beggar’s.

Coloured like cold lichen,
Shooed and shunned –
You quiver in crevices
at human footsteps.

I know what it’s like.
To feel
Unwanted.
Unloved.
Ugly.
I used to hide myself away
in dark places too.

So come –
I’ll set you down soft
among flowers.
Finding freedom, perhaps
you’ll put in a good word
to your Maker –
And the One who hears even
the heartbeats of spiders
will take pity on me
as I took pity on you.

Trust me. I will not hurt you.

You and I are much the same
in the grand scheme of things.

– ❤️ Yusra Gulab Jamman

Name: Yusra Gulab JammanAge: 20Location: Bristol, United KingdomInfluences: Arundhati Roy writes some of the most memorable, exquisite imagery I have ever read in my life! 🙂Inspiration for this poem: Various cheeky insect invaders which keep turning up in my bedroom even though I haven’t advertised for a roommate. Haha!

In all seriousness, though, these little creatures are vulnerable and helpless. They’re just trying to get by in this world – much like us humans. We should make the effort to be a little bit nicer to them, and to each other. 🙂

Bio: Chem… Physics… Ok, sorry. Lame joke. 🙂 Honestly speaking, my bio is that I am not a professional. I have never won any awards for poetry or anything like that… I just pour my heart out in some kind of vaguely rhythmic pattern and try to capture particular feelings at particular moments. I also try to have a good time in the process! As I improve and develop, I would love to achieve publication and branch out into other forms of writing, such as flash fiction, short stories, and novels. In the meantime, I am studying to become an English teacher. 🙂

Copyright for the above poem and image remains the sole property of Yusra Gulab Jamman.

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My name is Ryan Stone, I’m a freelance writer from Melbourne, Australia. I have no formal credentials, just an observer’s eye and an insatiable appetite for books. I’m rough around the edges but the right turn of phrase will stop me dead in my tracks every time. I love Metallica and Ted Kooser with equal passion and my closest friend in the world is my German Shepherd.
My poetry has recently appeared in Writers' Forum Magazine, Eunoia Review, Silver Birch Press, Algebra of Owls, Ekphrastic, Pyrokinection, Black Poppy Review, Goodreads, Napalm & Novocain, The Houseboat and an anthology or two.